AGRA: An interesting case has come up in district family court of Agra, where a couple has filed a divorce petition, as the husband refused to follow Islam and did not like his unborn child practicing it either.

Hailing from a very influential family in Agra, the man, a Hindu, is a dealer in luxury vehicles. The woman, who is from Kashmir, is a doctor.They got married in 2012 under section 13 of the Special Marriage Act, conducted by the additional district marriage (finance) of Agra. The marriage was also solemnised as per Islamic civil law and a proper nikahnama was issued by a qazi in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir.

According to the petition filed by the couple, the woman allegedly did not allow her husband to follow Hindu customs and religion, creating a rift between her mother-in-law and herself. This in turn caused “mental trauma” for the husband as he was unable to handle the situation.

Further, the man informed the court of the additional district judge, his wife allegedly coerced him to let their unborn child follow Islam and insisted that he or she should also have a Muslim name, to which the man did not agree.

It is interesting to note that, during the marriage, the husband had changed his religion and name for the nikahnama, but later retained his original identity during marriage registration under Special Marriage Act.

The two petitioners claimed to the court that both of them made all possible efforts to keep their relationship healthy but they failed, after which the woman left her husband and moved to Hanover, Germany for higher studies. They are now separated. The case was presented on Friday in district family court and the next date of hearing is in January 2018.